Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 20 · 2026-08-24

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The first table below shows changes in the total population of New York City from 1800 to 2000. The second and third tables show changes in the population of the five districts of the city (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) over the same period.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Student answer (Band 6.0)

The first table illustrates the population of New York, while the other two displays proportion of population distribution in five distinct cities namely - (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island) over the period of three centuries spanning from the year 1800 to 2000.

Overall, there has been a significant rise of residents in year your over the course of period. At the start of the period Manhattan had the most inhabitants which declined at the end of 20th century. Conversely, other districts experienced growth in population.

In year 1800, New york population was 79,216 which grew to roughly four fold in hundred years(34,37,202). The trend continued for another century making New York home to 8,009,185 people, a rise of 2.5 times from previous century.

The demographics across all five districts were not same Manhattan had the most occupants around 76%(60,515) of total city population that dramatically decreased to 19%(1,538,096) by the end of the period. In contrast, other four districts contributes to 81% at the end of 20th century.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response covers the main features of the data, including the overall population growth and the shift in distribution across districts. However, there are inaccuracies in data reporting; for instance, the text states Manhattan's population 'declined' to 1.5 million, whereas the table shows an increase from 60,515 to 1,538,096. Additionally, the calculation of the population growth between 1900 and 2000 is slightly inaccurate. While the main trends are identified, the lack of precision in interpreting the figures limits the score.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organized into logical paragraphs, with an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs. Cohesive devices such as 'Conversely', 'In year 1800', and 'In contrast' are used to link ideas. However, the progression of ideas is occasionally hindered by awkward phrasing, such as 'in year your over the course of period', which makes the flow less smooth. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate the total population data from the district-specific demographic data.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

The range of vocabulary is adequate for the task, using terms like 'demographics', 'inhabitants', and 'proportion'. However, there are some errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'roughly four fold in hundred years' and 'other four districts contributes to 81%'. These errors do not impede communication but demonstrate a limited control over more sophisticated lexical items. More precise terminology regarding data trends would improve the score.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The student uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. There are several grammatical errors, including missing articles ('In year 1800', 'at end of 20th century'), subject-verb agreement issues ('other two displays', 'districts contributes'), and awkward phrasing ('in year your over the course of period'). While these errors are frequent, they rarely prevent the reader from understanding the intended meaning. A greater focus on proofreading for basic grammatical accuracy would be beneficial.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.